Students & Alumni
POLS students are ambitious and action-oriented. They come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, including teaching, school systems leadership, business, education technology, and government. What they share is a desire to develop the skills and knowledge they need to be effective leaders.
POLS cohorts bring together small, diverse groups of students to widen each other’s view of leadership in various domains of education. Peer learning and support form a key component of the program, modeling the connectivity and collaboration crucial to education leadership. Moreover, POLS students graduate with a network of connections that extends beyond the program year.
Our students
Field project
Nurturing Creativity Through the Serve & Return Approach in Early Childhood Education
By Ryan Duncan
The Filming Interactions to Nurture Development (FIND) initiative within the Stanford Center on Early Childhood is inspired by the Serve and Return framework from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. FIND focuses on enhancing the caregiving skills of early childhood educators by ...
Bridging Insights for Equity: Enhancing Knowledge Integration at EdTrust-West
By Isabelle Saillard
EdTrust—West (ETW) aims to eliminate educational disparities in California by collaborating with schools, conducting research, and advocating for equitable policies. The Educator Engagement (EE) Team conducts Systemic Equity Reviews (SERs) in districts and higher education institutions, serving as a ...
College Access: Low-income, high-achieving students feel lost during the college admissions process. What unique obstacles and opportunities do they face?
By Brandon Tineo
This project explores the unique challenges and opportunities faced by low-income, high-achieving students during the college admissions process. Building on my personal experience and background, I focused on identifying the key barriers these students encounter and provide actionable ...
Life after POLS
POLS graduates are well prepared to lead in a wide range of roles and contexts. Alumni work in school and district settings, higher education, education philanthropies, corporate and educational recruiting, and government. Below are a few examples of positions held by POLS alumni.
Higher education
Assistant Dean of Students, Oberlin College
Native American Liaison, Stanford Undergraduate Admissions Office
Instructor, Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth
K–12 leadership
Assistant Principal, Noble Network of Charter Schools
Literacy Coordinator, Harlem Children’s Zone
Academic Program Manager, Summit Public Schools
School networks, districts, government
Data Analyst, Boston Public Schools
Assistant Budget and Policy Analyst, State of Oregon
Legislative Assistant, United States Senate
Educational intermediaries and ed tech
Instructional Design Specialist, Coursera
Program Manager, Reading Partners
Education Analyst, Emerson Collective
The Graduate School of Education’s EdCareers office provides career education and counseling, job listings, career fairs and other resources to GSE students and alumni.
